POST # 85
After a travel day yesterday across the water from Anacortes to Sidney B.C. I have arrived at my current housesit here in North Saanich. This time I am in charge of three, four legged friends. Polly the aussie cat, that likes to stay close by, Peugeot the younger more adventurous of the felines and finally Lamington the mutt, or as I like to say, bonehead who at this early stage of the housesit looks likely to be a real treat and lots of fun. So it's two furballs and one bonehead for the next three weeks. I won't be lonely.
The owner, Ann, just left this morning for a trip to Portugal and I only arrived back from the airport a few minutes ago after dropping her off. The area I am situated in is quite rural, mostly one acre properties, so there is plenty of greenery to enjoy and the peace and quiet are most welcome.
Today will be a day to settle in, and get to know the pets as well as the area. I did manage to find my way back to the house from the airport so that is a good start. Later I will probably head out for my standard bike ride, that is, if the weather co-operates. It's looking rather foggy and grey out there at the moment, but we'll see how the day goes.
A trip into town later today to get a few supplies might be on my list of things to do. Sidney is the closest place, and is only about fifteen minutes away at the most. I will try to limit my visits to town, so that I can enjoy this country living as much as possible.
Back in September.
Happy Trails
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
THOUGHTFUL: showing consideration for others; occupied with or given to thought; contemplative; meditative. WANDERER: moving from place to place without a fixed plan; or having no permanent residence; nomadic.
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
MOUNT SHASTA
POST # 84
This past Sunday, I had the opportunity to spend time with my friend Guy Mcpherson, and a host of others at a venue in Mt. Shasta, California. The purpose of the get together was to watch Mike Sosebee’s film, “Somewhere in New Mexico Before the End of Time", which is a documentary that discusses the future we are facing as a result of climate change and fossil fuel depletion. Throughout the documentary, Guy explains to the audience, just where we are at and where things are headed, including the prospect of near term human extinction and the message is a difficult one to swallow, for many folks.
After the film was over we sat around and had a discussion about it and listened to input from the people in the audience. The concept of near term human extinction can be quite a slap in the face to many people when they are confronted with it, and the reaction can vary from one individual to another. What I saw that night, was still a great amount of non-acceptance of this possibility, and I suppose that is a normal reaction for many people.
Personally, I have accepted that this is where we are heading, and as each day passes, I become more convinced of it. Long ago I reached the acceptance phase regarding this subject matter, and I am comfortable with it. However, I understand that for many people, it is quite hard to accept, in light of how important we think our lives are.
It’s a difficult pill to swallow, to think that you are going on with your life, making plans, having children, studying hard to achieve some particular goal, etc. etc, only to be confronted with the idea of near term human extinction. They didn’t tell you about that in grade school now, did they?
Ah, but life is always full of surprises and some are good, and some are bad. As I heard someone say many years ago, “It’s not what happens to you, but how you deal with it that counts.” I guess that holds true here,
but I think that many people are having(going to have) trouble dealing with the future that is looking more and more like it will be a rather short one.
If that wasn’t enough news to round out an evening, the topic of Fukushima came up as well, and from what I have heard, things are looking pretty grim over there. Nothing like a little nuclear meltdown to add some more spice to the concept of near term human extinction. Perhaps I would have been wiser to stay living in the southern hemisphere after all, and I guess that before the end of this year, I’ll know the answer to that question. Between now and then they are going to attempt to try to move the multitude of highly radioactive spent fuel rods out of the precarious location that they are now in, to a safer place. It’s an operation that has never been attempted before and if it is unsuccessful, then the results could be catastrophic for many people around the world, in the northern hemisphere especially. It wasn’t an evening for the faint of heart.
In spite of the news, I’m glad that I had the opportunity to be there and meet some like minded individuals. They’re hard to come by when discussing these sorts of topics. And on a lighter note, it was interesting to spend a few hours in Mt. Shasta village, as it seemed to me like I had time travelled back to the ’60’s. I spent some time at a cafe called “Yaks” on the main street prior to the film, and the music was Crosby, Stills and Nash, Neil Young and all the other greats from that time period. It was both strange and enjoyable at the same time.
I had the opportunity to meet Mike Sosebee, the film's producer/director, for the first time, and of course I had the chance to spend a few precious moments with Guy Mcpherson. He’s a very busy man, yet he always seems to have more than enough time to just have a chat. For that I am grateful. And I count myself very fortunate to count him as a friend.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
This past Sunday, I had the opportunity to spend time with my friend Guy Mcpherson, and a host of others at a venue in Mt. Shasta, California. The purpose of the get together was to watch Mike Sosebee’s film, “Somewhere in New Mexico Before the End of Time", which is a documentary that discusses the future we are facing as a result of climate change and fossil fuel depletion. Throughout the documentary, Guy explains to the audience, just where we are at and where things are headed, including the prospect of near term human extinction and the message is a difficult one to swallow, for many folks.
After the film was over we sat around and had a discussion about it and listened to input from the people in the audience. The concept of near term human extinction can be quite a slap in the face to many people when they are confronted with it, and the reaction can vary from one individual to another. What I saw that night, was still a great amount of non-acceptance of this possibility, and I suppose that is a normal reaction for many people.
Personally, I have accepted that this is where we are heading, and as each day passes, I become more convinced of it. Long ago I reached the acceptance phase regarding this subject matter, and I am comfortable with it. However, I understand that for many people, it is quite hard to accept, in light of how important we think our lives are.
It’s a difficult pill to swallow, to think that you are going on with your life, making plans, having children, studying hard to achieve some particular goal, etc. etc, only to be confronted with the idea of near term human extinction. They didn’t tell you about that in grade school now, did they?
Ah, but life is always full of surprises and some are good, and some are bad. As I heard someone say many years ago, “It’s not what happens to you, but how you deal with it that counts.” I guess that holds true here,
but I think that many people are having(going to have) trouble dealing with the future that is looking more and more like it will be a rather short one.
If that wasn’t enough news to round out an evening, the topic of Fukushima came up as well, and from what I have heard, things are looking pretty grim over there. Nothing like a little nuclear meltdown to add some more spice to the concept of near term human extinction. Perhaps I would have been wiser to stay living in the southern hemisphere after all, and I guess that before the end of this year, I’ll know the answer to that question. Between now and then they are going to attempt to try to move the multitude of highly radioactive spent fuel rods out of the precarious location that they are now in, to a safer place. It’s an operation that has never been attempted before and if it is unsuccessful, then the results could be catastrophic for many people around the world, in the northern hemisphere especially. It wasn’t an evening for the faint of heart.
In spite of the news, I’m glad that I had the opportunity to be there and meet some like minded individuals. They’re hard to come by when discussing these sorts of topics. And on a lighter note, it was interesting to spend a few hours in Mt. Shasta village, as it seemed to me like I had time travelled back to the ’60’s. I spent some time at a cafe called “Yaks” on the main street prior to the film, and the music was Crosby, Stills and Nash, Neil Young and all the other greats from that time period. It was both strange and enjoyable at the same time.
I had the opportunity to meet Mike Sosebee, the film's producer/director, for the first time, and of course I had the chance to spend a few precious moments with Guy Mcpherson. He’s a very busy man, yet he always seems to have more than enough time to just have a chat. For that I am grateful. And I count myself very fortunate to count him as a friend.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
SEARCHING FOR A WIFI CONNECTION
POST #83
I was riding around the other day on my bike searching for a wifi connection and I ended up at a McDonald's restaurant of all places. It's not a place that I normally would go to.
The reason I was there was that I wanted to listen to a podcast in which my friend Mike Ruppert was interviewing my friend Guy Mcpherson. The podcast URL address is written below. For some reason, I couldn't link it directly to my blog, so for those interested, the url will need to be typed in.
http://lifeboathour.podbean.com/2013/08/11/lifeboat-hour-guy-mcpherson-081113/
Listening to this interview, while watching the people at the restaurant gobbling down their big macs and fries, was a strange contrast.
Happy trails
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
I was riding around the other day on my bike searching for a wifi connection and I ended up at a McDonald's restaurant of all places. It's not a place that I normally would go to.
The reason I was there was that I wanted to listen to a podcast in which my friend Mike Ruppert was interviewing my friend Guy Mcpherson. The podcast URL address is written below. For some reason, I couldn't link it directly to my blog, so for those interested, the url will need to be typed in.
http://lifeboathour.podbean.com/2013/08/11/lifeboat-hour-guy-mcpherson-081113/
Listening to this interview, while watching the people at the restaurant gobbling down their big macs and fries, was a strange contrast.
Happy trails
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
SISTERS JUDYROSIEGERRYLYNN
POST # 82
During a recent visit to Vancouver by my sister Rosie and her husband Keith, the subject of loneliness came up.
My chosen lifestyle of wandering around house/pet sitting these days, prompted Rosie to ask, "Don't you ever get lonely?" My response was that I couldn't really think of a time in my life when I ever felt lonely**. This got me to thinking of just why that might be the case, and for what it is worth, here is my take on the subject.
Fortunately for me by the time I was born, there were already four older sisters inhabiting the house that I grew up in. Now, even though I was unaware of all the attention I must have been given in those early years, I think it helped to form a foundation of feeling secure in the world around me.
(Mom and sisters with Paul still "in the oven")
I grew up in a very loving environment, and when one feels loved, it's difficult in my humble opinion, to feel lonely. That feeling of being loved has carried right through to the present day, and I am grateful for that.
Even though we all live in different parts of the world these days, which results in infrequent communication, it's comforting to know that they are there.
And it keeps the loneliness at bay. Thanks sisters.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful (but never lonely) Wanderer
**Upon re-reading this short essay, I would only clarify that when it comes to spreading the message of climate change which I often talk about here, then I feel quite alone. But other than that, loneliness is not an issue for me due to the reasons stated above.
And one final thought...
I did have a moment of terror back in 2003 when I thought that the sailboat I was on in the middle of the Indian Ocean, was holed, and was going down. It was dark, I was alone in my cabin, and in that moment, I have to admit, I felt very, very, alone.
During a recent visit to Vancouver by my sister Rosie and her husband Keith, the subject of loneliness came up.
My chosen lifestyle of wandering around house/pet sitting these days, prompted Rosie to ask, "Don't you ever get lonely?" My response was that I couldn't really think of a time in my life when I ever felt lonely**. This got me to thinking of just why that might be the case, and for what it is worth, here is my take on the subject.
Fortunately for me by the time I was born, there were already four older sisters inhabiting the house that I grew up in. Now, even though I was unaware of all the attention I must have been given in those early years, I think it helped to form a foundation of feeling secure in the world around me.
I grew up in a very loving environment, and when one feels loved, it's difficult in my humble opinion, to feel lonely. That feeling of being loved has carried right through to the present day, and I am grateful for that.
Even though we all live in different parts of the world these days, which results in infrequent communication, it's comforting to know that they are there.
And it keeps the loneliness at bay. Thanks sisters.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful (but never lonely) Wanderer
**Upon re-reading this short essay, I would only clarify that when it comes to spreading the message of climate change which I often talk about here, then I feel quite alone. But other than that, loneliness is not an issue for me due to the reasons stated above.
And one final thought...
I did have a moment of terror back in 2003 when I thought that the sailboat I was on in the middle of the Indian Ocean, was holed, and was going down. It was dark, I was alone in my cabin, and in that moment, I have to admit, I felt very, very, alone.
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